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National Health Service marks 65 years

As the NHS enters its 66th year, we've been looking at the pressures the service is under and hearing from those who rely on it.

The NHS is our biggest employer with more than 70,000 people directly employed by the service, working across 200 different jobs

The NHS costs the taxpayer some £6bn a year - 40% of the Welsh Government's budget

The service sees more than a million people a year in its Accident & Emergency units alone

NHS: The Frontline

Earlier this year Accident & Emergency units were under intense pressure, with record numbers of patients and half of A&E consultants telling the Health Minister that the service was in 'meltdown'.

Our health reporter Rob Osborne was given special access to the A&E department at Swansea's Morriston Hospital to get a frontline view on what's happening now - and what the future may hold.

NHS: Your Stories

The scale of the problems facing today's NHS were made clear in a recent staff survey, which revealed just half of NHS staff in Wales would be happy for their friends and relatives to receive the standards of care it currently provides.

Carole Green has taken a look at the NHS from the perspecive of the patients who are demanding better care and treatment with dignity.

NHS: Recruitment

Around 70,000 people are employed by the Welsh NHS people across 200 different roles and specialties.

Their experience and skill make the NHS what it is, but in some key roles health boards are struggling to recruit.

We can reveal nearly a quarter of our GPs will be retiring within the next decade, prompting fears for the future. Our reporter Owain Phillips has this special report.